What do you know about THAT???: Vice Presidents #36-38

By Philip Leo McCarron

Sunday

Jun 17, 2018 at 1:39 PMJun 17, 2018 at 1:39 PM

Category: Vice Presidents

When Harry S. Truman ascended to the presidency on April 12, 1945 (the date of FDR’s death), he left the vice presidency vacant until Jan. 20, 1949, when he was elected as president in his own right. His VP was:

36. Alben William Barkley, nicknamed “Veep” (bestowed to him by his young grandson, as an alternative to the rather wordy “Mister Vice President”), who served from Jan. 20, 1949, to Jan. 20, 1953. Truman was immensely pleased with his choice as a running-mate: “Barkley, as vice president,” Truman said, “was in a class by himself. He had the complete confidence of both the president and the Senate.” Seventy years old when sworn in as VP, Barkley – from Graves County, Kentucky – was a storyteller of great repute (many said he was the best in Washington since President Lincoln – a son of the same state). He was largely regarded as a grandfatherly figure – genial, friendly, patient. But he was no pushover – a seasoned politician, he was one of the last VPs to spend more time as president of the Senate than he did in the executive office. However, he vowed to not enter into the vice presidency, regarding it a “four-year period of silence.” As VP, he was a prolific public speaker. He loved speaking to crowds, and felt it was his duty to do so as a public servant. In 1956, after his vice presidency, he agreed to be the keynote speaker at an event at Washington and Lee University. At the conclusion of his comments, he collapsed and died of a massive heart attack, with the echo of the students’ standing ovation still ringing in his ears. He was 78.

37. Richard Milhous Nixon became Dwight D. Eisenhower’s VP on Jan. 20, 1953. Nixon – an ambitious man – viewed the vice presidency as an office to be sought after, rather than “four years of rest.” From the start, Nixon had his eye on the presidency. A Californian, the word “battle” seems to best summarize his political calling, from beginning to end. Nothing ever came easily to the guy, in his entire career. People either liked him or hated him. He was never considered a “Nixon? Yeah – I guess he’s OK”-type guy. He wasn’t comfortable with people, generally – and they weren’t comfortable with him, either. He was either ardently supported or fiercely opposed. That’s enough to give anyone an attitude, and Nixon was a man with an attitude. In 1956, President Eisenhower considered dropping him from the ticket. Nixon bristled at the idea. He walked into the Oval Office and challenged the president: “Mr. President, I would be honored to continue as vice president under you” – forcing Eisenhower’s hand. If he rejected Nixon for his second term, Ike’s dissenters would pounce on his indecision, risking party unrest. Another battle, won by Nixon, who had plenty more in his future.

38. Next up: Lyndon Baines Johnson, Jan. 20, 1961 to Nov. 22, 1963. Born on a farm in Stonewall, Texas, on Aug. 27, 1908, LBJ (as he was known) – whose father was a politician – started his career as a school teacher. In this capacity, he witnessed poverty and want he never imagined existed, and which altered his outlook on life. He wanted to improve things. He knew he could do so as a politician, which is the path he followed. LBJ arrived in Washington in the early 1930s as a congressman’s aide – a job that didn’t last long. He was elected to the Congress in 1937, under FDR’s “New Deal.” It was a career that lasted 32 years. He was elected to the Senate in 1948, became the Democrat minority leader in 1950, and majority leader in 1954. He became a so-called “master of the deal.” In 1960, he ran against a young Massachusetts whippersnapper named John Fitzgerald Kennedy for the Democratic nomination for president – and lost. But he was picked as the VP candidate during the Democratic convention, accepted, and rode the Kennedy wave to victory. Like Nixon, he had plenty more to come in his future, too.